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Monday, July 31, 2017

It's Starting To Be Fun Again

It has been over 20 years since I last rode a bicycle and it has been about 3 years since the husband and I planned to get bicycles. For our 8th year wedding anniversary, instead of getting the traditional present made out of bronze or pottery, I thought the wheels of the bicycle could easily represent the number 8 but we wanted super low maintenance bicycles. We found two bicycle companies: Dynamic Bicycles based in the UK which uses a drive shaft system and Priority Bicycles based in New York City which uses a Gates Carbon Drive belt system and the NuVinci Infinity Shift Gear Hub, which is perfect for the hilly terrain of Colorado Springs. We were leaning towards Dynamic Bicycles but when we sent an email inquiry to both companies, Priority Bicycles responded within 2 hours (at that time, it was after their normal office hours) and when I replied back, they responded within 2 minutes. Let us just say that I was delighted with the customer service. So I looked up reviews and YouTube videos and it looks like it was easy to assemble the bicycle, practically zero maintenance on it and if the belt skips or the brakes need to be adjusted, it was pretty easy to fix/adjust them yourself and doesn't require a lot of time or expertise either and the bicycle ships with all the tools you will need. It took me awhile to decide between the Priority Coast in pink (of course) and the Priority Glide. The Glide won because of the NuVinci Infinity Shift Gear Hub, so I ordered that and I received it on June 12, 2017. I assembled it myself in about 50 minutes. My husband's Priority Continuum Onyx bicycle was on back order (that's how popular it is).

The next day, I rode it around my neighborhood and fell onto the sidewalk and skinned my knees. My knees were bruised and swollen and it hurt, a lot. Two weeks later, I rode my bike again on June 30 and fell onto the sidewalk again and my knees were skinned, bruised and swollen again. I obviously need to re-learn how to balance, ride properly and brake properly.

On July 3, my husband and his aunt helped me overcome my increasing nervousness around cycling and his aunt coached me on what I need to practice and work on. His aunt's husband gave us a really good suggestion to have me practice riding my bike at a baseball field that has a dirt in-field so it would be softer to land on then gradually move on to the asphalt vacant parking lot. That next weekend, my husband took me to his elementary school to practice. My husband also lowered the seat and handlebar to fit my size/reach better. The seat is a tad lower than normal but I haven't fallen off my bike since then so now it's starting to be fun again. I can't wait to get more strength in my legs so my husband and I can run errands riding our bicycles instead of driving our cars especially if the store is around our neighborhood like the grocery store.

On July 24, my husband's Priority Continuum Onyx bicycle finally arrived after UPS botched the delivery (this is the 3rd time UPS botched various deliveries to our house) and we assembled it in about an hour and 10 minutes because of the extra front light and cable, front fender and rear light and it fits him just fine. We were worried about the inseam measurements for the bike as the bike's measurements was higher by 0.25 inches and we were worried it might be too tall for my husband but it turned out fine. I have to say, the Onyx looks gorgeous! But I love the fact that my Glide came with the water bottle cage. Wished the Onyx came with the water bottle cage too.

On the writing side of things, I've finally finished chapter 5 of Helena and the Dragon, the third book in the Helena Meets Magic series at 20k+ words. I do need to kick it up a notch and write faster if I want to finish this book by October 2017.

In the world of crochet, I unfortunately ran out of yarn for my Patons Kroy Socks Toe Up Socks and I think its a little too tight when I tried it on so I'm going to reach out to the resident sock expert at the Sock It To Me Ravelry forum to see if the tightness is normal or do I need to frog it. Wish me luck!

Chapter 6 of Helena and the Dragon - my computer screen aversion for writing drafts seems to have dissipated (for now). But I still have that notepad and pencil on hand in the event that I feel the urge to write with pencil and paper rather than type on a keyboard. I'm going to free write and brain dump using pencil and paper then switch to my MacBook Air to continue writing the first draft and see how that technique goes as I do want to be as efficient as possible when it comes to completing the first draft.

Currently Crocheting

Patons Kroy Socks Toe Up Socks - Unfortunately, I ran out of yarn for the heel part. I finally tried it on but it doesn't seem to fit. It's too tight and only half of my foot could fit into the sock. I did manage to fit my foot all the way in but found that I need to frog it and work additional rows because the heel opening was quite off. Lesson learned, no matter what the pattern says, always try it on for size. I will get this eventually.

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